Calling all brokers, lenders, and advisers from across FS. New survey shows more over-50s trust Martin Lewis than FS experts. Why and what can you do about it?

People have an inherent distrust for paid advice and a proclivity to accept hearsay. If something worked for your friend's uncle, surely that would work for you too? (Not!)

Financial advisors spend a lot of time and money on education and qualifications and are strictly regulated in their profession for a reason. They also have to abide by various codes of conduct and have to put their client's interests first. Avoid them at your peril.

Let's get this clear from the start. Martin Lewis is not a qualified financial adviser, but he is a one-man-brand-machine.

With a podcast on the BBC, an occasional guest spot on ITV's This Morning show, and of course, a website that ranks number one in the Finance and Financial Planning and Management category (according to Similarweb), it's easy to see why so many over-50s trust him.

From a brand perspective, trust is earned and he's earned it in buckets full. His MoneySavingExpert website has been around since 2003. That's 20 years of brand awareness.

But what can brokers, lenders and advisors do about it? Earn the trust of your audience. Find out where they are and what they're in to. Give them what they need for their specific time in life. Over 50's consume different types of media than Gen-Z does on TikTok!

Financial advice has a long history of being bad at selling itself. The subject is quite dry and I doubt many children grow up dreaming of helping fix pensions. The benefits can also feel intangible and too often people cannot see how it is worth the money. Lastly, there is also a lingering lack of trust in the profession because of historic scandals and the variable quality of advisers themselves. It really is true that the advice you get is only as good as the adviser who gives it.

My advice to those seeking advice is to try and find out the adviser's likely solutions up front and be clear how much it is going to cost. Challenge the adviser to justify the fee. The right adviser will be comfortable with that and should be able to answer it clearly.

People that now fall into the over 50’s category were those most impacted by the crash in 2008. Financial advisers weren’t solely responsible for the crash but the financial services industry really got battered back then. People lost trust in financial advisers and turned to the likes of the ‘Money Saving Expert’ which boosted Martin’s popularity. It’s been a bit of an uphill struggle since then, although helped enormously by the various industry reviews that have occurred since. Martin is already directing people to specialist advisers who can help them understand the booming over 50’s mortgage market, there are more options available now than ever if you’re over 50. A broker that knows their stuff is invaluable. Martin has the power to quash the last remaining stigma and has a duty to do so given his influence.

The honest reason is that financial, mortgage advisors and bank managers have a history of being untrustworthy. Financial and mortgage advice has come on leaps and bounds over the last decade with regulations and trying to stop the sales aspect that gives us the bad name. But this is never going to change when you have unregulated estate agents pushing mortgage services or financial advisors that won't deal with people unless they have £100k to invest. Martin Lewis has built up a great reputation over a long period of time and you can tell he generally cares and wants to help people save money, I may not agree with everything he says but he is one of the good guys.

Martin Lewis is trusted by over 50's because of his potent "money-saving expert" brand, his "plain English" style, and his long-term association with trusted media.

If he was known not as "Money-saving expert Martin Lewis", but as "Multi-Millionaire Martin Lewis", his advice on cutting coupons and exploiting loopholes would fall on deaf ears.

If he spoke technical gobbledegook every time he opened his mouth, he wouldn't be on the radio or TV every five minutes.

And no one would know who he was if he hadn't put in the hard yards of giving away free content for more than a decade.

So what can the financial services industry do about it? They can stop moaning, and start being more like Martin. Trust is earned - and Martin Lewis has more than earned the nation's trust.

Anyone who wants to become trusted by their target audience needs to be both visible and credible. Until 20 years ago, the only platforms you could use to build visibility and credibility with a large audience were TV, radio and the national press.

And those are the platforms Martin Lewis has used to great effect.

Most under 30s will rarely look at the mainstream media channels that Martin Lewis relies on. But the over 50s do. And that's why it tends to be over-50s who are the demographic most likely to trust him.

Luckily, in today's social media age, there are many other channels that financial advisers can use to get in front of their target audience and demonstrate their knowledge and credibility, so as they become trusted sources of information and advice - even if they can't get a regular seat on the GMB sofa.

So long as Martin Lewis is clear that what he says is generic -- and he encourages people to get specific advice -- we don't think it's a bad thing that so many over 50's trust him. We acknowledge and appreciate people taking a hybrid approach when they're gathering information about their finances... and so, I guess that perhaps we go against the tide of opinion on this one.

Certain scandals have tarnished the whole financial services industry. I personally think it's a great thing that Martin Lewis gets people talking about their finances. Our job is to now help those people understand that they can find their own personal Martin Lewis, waiting and ready to help.

I do not believe he oversteps the mark, and feel financial services professionals can leverage the trust by building upon the conversations he is starting.

As an over 50 money coach, I have to admit I trust Mr Lewis more than FS experts. Why? I think it the reputation of FS "experts" was sullied back in the 80's when many of us started our pensions. We have seen a lack of transparency, high fees and agents with sales targets for products that don't always meet our needs or our best interests. Retail investing has grown hugely, tracker funds are often out performing managed funds. My IFA charged me £750 for one meeting per year. I learned to check exactly what he checked but did it more often. Having been through a couple of recessions, many of us have wised up and the scally's have suffered. How do you fix it? be honest and don't charge so much.

The guy off the TV must be right...
Martin Lewis is touted as an "expert" and people see him regularly on TV shows where he is often wheeled out to provide an "expert view". He is a classic example of brand awareness by the general public. On the other hand the generic bank manager or financial adviser is often caught up with the bad press . However ask a client who has experience of a financial or mortgage adviser and chances are that the story will be very different.
As an industry we are partly to blame for this, I have lost track of the numerous articles written by advisers talking about "bad" advisers. Or the seemingly never-ending war of words by some about SJP. Perhaps if we all talked proudly about our fellow professionals the public might start to change their views?

I think advisers across the board have to continue to be as open and honest with customers as possible. Let's be honest financial advice has a bad name because 15 to 20 years ago the industry was like the wild west.

We have all heard horror stories around Equity Release or Advisers who have ripped their customers off and that is what makes the news. Not the millions of people whose advisers have helped with no issues at all.

Having clear structures, and charges and just being open and honest with customers will inevitably help to change perceptions in the future. Many advisers see consumer duty as a hurdle to overcome but I see it as another way to continue engagement with my customers.

There's only one word needed to explain the Martin Lewis phenomenon - relatability. Lewis' approach is open, he uses simple language, he is open about things being complex and that it's OK to not know something. People tend to trust those they believe understand their particular circumstances. Bank managers and IFAs could learn a lesson or two from Lewis about putting themselves in other people's shoes when giving advice.